Girls: series two, Sky Atlantic, review

The first series of Girls was a startlingly funny glimpse into the lives of
overeducated twentysomethings jostling for work in the creative industries. Ben
Bryant reviews the first episode of series two.

It takes all of two and a half minutes for the second season of Girls to address the critics who called it out for its all-white vision of twentysomethings trying to make it in New York. It does so with typical verve, too. Hannah, Lena Dunham’s character, appears in shot naked, straddling Sandy, a black Republican, urgently telling him: “I wanted this so bad.”

Two fingers to the critics, then. There is a bit more to this crude rendering of race-relations than meets the eye, however, and Sandy’s appearance is not as tokenistic as it first seems - although you'll have to wait until the second episode to find out why.

In the meantime, the writers focus on reminding everyone of what makes Girls great. Hannah now lives with her gay ex-boyfriend Elijah, and is entangled with both Adam from series one and Sandy. Jessa is still with unlikely husband John. Shoshanna is hung up on Ray and misses her virginity. Marnie has lost her job and her boyfriend. So much like series one, it opens with disappointment, unemployment, and a sprinkling of excruciating sex scenes.

The show is still at its best when it’s quietly satirising everyone involved. In one of the standout scenes from the first series, for instance, venture capitalist John tries to impress Marnie and Jessa with his expensive flat and bad music - and gets mercilessly cold-shouldered. He's embarrassingly try-hard, but it’s difficult not to sympathise with him when he blasts Jessa and Marnie’s sense of entitlement and trust fund dependency: “Daddy didn’t buy me this apartment, or this rug, or this nose,” he says.

In a similar vein, it’s a relief to learn that Hannah is still equal parts endearing and irritating. Season one ended with Hannah alone on Coney Island beach, having alienated her best friend Marnie and her boyfriend Adam. Has she learnt to curb her narcissism? Not exactly. In one memorable exchange between Hannah and Adam - who was hit by a bus the last time Hannah tried to tell him how different she was - she says: “I have tried this whole thing of being selfless and taking care of everyone around me, but I’m an individual.”

That kind of talk is exactly what riles those who dismissed Hannah and her friends as too self-centred to be engaging. But Girls isn't as vain as its protagonists, and for anyone who recognises its characters - and there are plenty of them in London, at least - that's why it continues to be a compelling watch.